


Accept and Endure

by emothy



Category: Prince of Tennis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-12-05
Updated: 2006-12-05
Packaged: 2017-10-05 05:02:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/38081
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emothy/pseuds/emothy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Pre-D1. Niou breaks the rules; this time it's worth it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Accept and Endure

-

Niou gets these feelings sometimes, a sort of aching like a dream forgotten on waking. If he happens to mention them to the others, Marui sniggers and calls it his 'women's intuition', which leads to (good-natured) fighting on the courts, which makes Sanada mad, but if Yukimura is smiling as he watches on then he doesn't say anything about it, no matter how much he wants to.

The feelings have always had meaning though, and Niou never disregards them. When he finds his feet taking him to places he didn't even really know existed, he lets them.

When he catches sight of Yagyuu and stops short, his breathing catching in his throat and his heart quivering, he knows he has found what he is searching for. And makes an offer without even stopping to think about the infamous RikkaiDai Tennis Team Golden Rules.

_You don't invite outsiders into the tennis club_.

Sanada says, if they were dedicated enough to tennis to be worthy of Rikkai's team, they would have found their way to it on their own, on the very first day of school. But Sanada is not always right, Niou knows. Sometimes he feels like he's the only one on Rikkai's team who remembers it.

Unfortunately, Yukimura has a lot of faith in the Golden Rule also, Niou finds out the next day at practice. With all the eyes at RikkaiDai, all the people sticking their noses into business that isn't theirs, and all the gossips spreading tales, he should have known his antics wouldn't have gone undiscovered.

For once Marui looks on soberly, and silently. Jackal and Yanagi seem full of regret, but Niou knows it's probably regret of _his_ actions, rather than of what Yukimura is about to do to him, if the icy glare of death is anything to go by.

"I don't want to see your face at practice for _two weeks_." His captain says to him coldly and bluntly. "And if you think you'll help your cause by showing dedication and turning up anyway... You will find yourself sadly mistaken."

Niou isn't even permitted to stay through the rest of that day's practice, and a part of him is grateful. He could not stand the pitying looks, or the shock from those who don't know Yukimura well enough, or even from those who do, and can't believe Niou could have done something so bad as to bring it to this.

Niou has a feeling Yukimura must have seen it with his own eyes, else how would he have known the impact Yagyuu had had on him? And yet, if he had seen, he would have realised this punishment was nothing more than pushing him straight back to Yagyuu.

"I thought you wanted me to join your tennis club?" Yagyuu asks, holding the racket Niou has lent him like it is a foreign object. Niou's almost surprised he doesn't hold it upside-down.

"I figured I have to train you up first," Niou says. For all his instinct, he is reluctant to tell the whole truth of it this early. "Make them see what I've discovered."

"You make it sound like this is all for your own benefit."

Niou pulls a face; this is not the impression he wanted to give off, but he can't call back his words now. It is his own fault for wanting to mask the drawing effect Yagyuu has on him. Before he can call up a suitable response, Yagyuu has turned away looking thoughtful. Perhaps his look gave something away?

"Teach me something, then." He says from the other side of the net. Niou blinks; has enough time passed for him to have walked so far from where he was just standing?

He serves an easy ball, willing to test Yagyuu slowly, give him a chance to adjust, and finds the ball sent back like lightening to his side of the court, and bouncing away far past it, with force.

"Not very challenging, is it?" Yagyuu says, looking at the tennis racket and poking the strings. Niou just smiles, and ups his game a few notches.

He can't call it _teaching_ Yagyuu tennis, because he plays like he has always known how to. Like Niou knew he would, deep down inside, he realises. And while Yagyuu has a series of moves entirely his own, Niou finds that watching him play, is sometimes like looking into a mirror. And he can't work out if Yagyuu is using more energy than he thought in playing, and copying Niou's moves subconsciously in order to assist himself, or if he is doing it to see if Niou will notice.

Niou also begins to wonder when he decided Yagyuu had such a sense of humour; he gives no indication of one either on the court or off of it. Though it's not like they've developed a friendship of any sort; Niou meets Yagyuu at the courts (far enough away for no member of Rikkai's team to happen to come across them); they play, then sometimes maybe they grab a couple of milkshakes at the cafe down the road. But even then they don't exactly talk much. Niou wonders if there should be something strange about that fact. He wonders if in wondering he hasn't just shown himself to be strange after all.

Yagyuu gets another ball past him, and Niou realises he's spent too long just wondering. If his instincts are telling him Yagyuu has some weird sense of humour, then he will go with it. He narrows his eyes a little, and resolves to join in the game. If Yagyuu is not doing it on purpose, then perhaps it will awaken him to what he is doing, and he can find his own game. If he _is_ doing it on purpose... Well, it will be more fun this way.

Niou watches and makes himself aware of the things Yagyuu does without thinking; his stance is entirely his own, natural instinct telling you the best position to be in to receive the ball. He does not stand poised like a tennis player, but more like he is offering to let a lady to pass in front of him, or waiting his turn to get on a bus. Thus his nickname is founded. But Yagyuu won't find out that Niou is calling him _The Gentleman_ inside his own head for a while yet. Niou even starts it out as _The_ Little _Gentleman_, but he will never admit that to Yagyuu, ever. It'll earn him a mini-beating, and Yagyuu isn't afraid to do it.

This is something else Niou knows by instinct, and neglects to question why. It puts him off his game, and Yagyuu has already earned too many points by chance.

Awaiting Yagyuu's next serve, Niou mimics the stance he has been analysing, and he sees Yagyuu flinch a tiny bit. He _knows_. Niou wants to smile, but he must pretend nothing is amiss. The serve is fumbled and easy to return, and Niou does so. Between shots he returns back to the same stance, and can hear Sanada's disapproval in his head, _Niou's messing about again. Should we really have someone who can't play a game seriously on the team?_

_Fuck you, Sanada,_ Niou thinks to himself, returning the ball with more force than he meant to. It streams past Yagyuu and makes a loud cracking sound, considering it only connects with the ground. Sanada just doesn't understand. He _isn't_ always fooling about, and tennis _is_ allowed to be fun. Enjoying it is the whole point. And if your mindgames to trick your opponent happen to make others laugh too, well what is the harm in that?

"That seemed a little unecessary," Yagyuu says, breaking the common silence that usually ghosts over the two of them. They never keep score aloud, always knowing who has won when. It's always Niou, but his lead is shortening ever so slightly each time.

"I'm sorry, I got distracted." Niou says honestly, scratching at his head. Here he is getting all hot-headed and The Gentleman is still being proper. Even if he is attempting to mess with Niou's head. "Please, take your serve."

Yagyuu nods solemnly, watching even more intently through his glasses. Niou knows what for, and this time he does not mimic Yagyuu's usual stance, but steps into Yagyuu's backhand before the ball is even released. A stupid move for tennis, letting your opponent prepare to hit it to the hardest place by your positioning, but a very smart move for making Yagyuu miss the ball completely and letting it bounce at his feet multiple times without noticing.

"Can you do that with everyone?" Yagyuu barks across the court. Is this how he sounds when he is angry?, Niou wonders.

"Can _you_?" He retorts. "Or are you trying to get back at me for tempting you into tennis?"

"Why would I do that?" Yagyuu asks, resting his borrowed racket on the ground and leaning a little of his weight on it.

"Because you didn't realise you were going to enjoy it." Niou says flatly.

Yagyuu ignores this completely. "I was asking a serious question." He says.

"So was I." Niou replies. They are getting nowhere fast. Yagyuu shrugs.

"Do you ever play tennis with your actual teammates?" He asks, his voice returning to its normal level. "It seems like between school and these matches here, you must not have much free time. And school is closed by now."

Niou presses his lips together so hard they begin to hurt.

"The team and I are not on the exact same page at the moment." He says eventually, through gritted teeth.

"Rikkai's tennis team is not the only one that does not tolerate rule-breakers." Yagyuu shrugs. "It's a school-wide attitude."

"How would you know anything about it?" Niou asks defensively; very defensively. Though the speculation would have made it's way round most all the classes by now, no-one from the tennis team would have confirmed or denied anything, let alone spilt everything. Yukimura would simply not have allowed it. If anyone on his team disgraces themselves, they do it privately. And though Niou is not exactly happy with Yagyuu right now, he still does not consider anything he has done as disgraceful.

"Your captain told me," Yagyuu says, "when I went to observe a Rikkai tennis practice session."

An area where Niou's sight is blocked for now, he realises. He had no idea.

"I don't believe Captain Yukimura would have told you anything." Niou insists. "He is the one who enforces the importance of secrecy on others."

"Perhaps he wouldn't have told me," Yagyuu agrees, "except that he already knew who I was."

_I knew it!_ Niou thinks triumphantly. Though it isn't much of a triumph; Yukimura finds out everything, so to assume he knew about this personally wasn't much of a leap of insight to make. But with the captain, any small triumph is something.

"So you know everything." Niou says, his triumph fleeting when he remembers Yagyuu is still there in front of him.

"I know that you're temporarily banned from practice because of me," Yagyuu replies. "And yet you still come and play a match against me every evening like it doesn't matter. But it obviously matters to you, else you never would have become a Regular on the team."

"And it's because I'm a Regular that my behaviour was even more unacceptable." Niou says, stooping down to pick up a ball from the court.

"What will you do when the two weeks are up?" Yagyuu asks, picking up the ball on his side of the court and offering it out to Niou across the net. Niou takes it silently, thinking. He hasn't stopped to think about this before now; he tends to live in the moment, and let tomorrow take care of itself. But he knows sometimes it won't.

"Go back, pretend everything is normal until everyone else does too, and take whatever further punishment Yukimura and Sanada decide to throw at me." He says eventually, shrugging like it doesn't matter. He doesn't really believe they will punish him further, but they will certainly watch him more closely. Like an untrustworthy child. Niou sighs. He doesn't think about how Yagyuu will fit into this new scenario.

And Yagyuu can tell it hasn't hit Niou yet. He smiles to himself; that's fine. That's just what he wants. He can play games off the court as well as on, even if Niou is slightly better at them.

When Niou finally realises, he is in class, the day before his ban from the club will be over. And he thinks he understands why Yagyuu was so quiet after asking the question; going back to normal means no more tennis matches between them. They were not a part of his schedule, or his life, before, so why would they be after? Especially since Yagyuu is a threat to his team membership. Yukimura has probably threatened him thoroughly; it is what he excels at.

Niou rushes to the courts after school, and waits... And waits... And waits. Yagyuu does not turn up. And why would he; their last chance to play a match together, or so he believes. Why even bother? Niou kicks himself for not seeing it sooner, and just saying something, anything. But it is too late. It is almost completely dark when he lifts his rucksack from the ground and shuffles his way home, feet dragging along the ground the entire way. Before he even reaches home he finds his centre and reminds himself these things happen for a reason. He must accept the events as they have unfolded, and endure. At least this will make life less complicated, he thinks. He can go back to the team and pretend to be brought to heel, play the obedient dog for his captain and vice-captain. For the whole team, if it's what they want to see. RikkaiDai is not supposed to be a team full of puppets, but sometimes Niou sees them that way, when he is in one of his bad moods.

Though he knows it is a bad attitude to still be holding on to when he is reunited with the team, Niou cannot help but feel sour as he pushes open the door to the indoor courts. Everyone is playing already, and they don't glance his way when he enters - puppetry at it's best, well trained not to be easily distracted, and therefore Niou notices the very few eyes upon him. Yukimura, who is smiling whole-heartedly, which is strange, and still so very Yukimura, and Yagyuu... Kitted out in full team uniform. Niou blinks once, and then again, rubbing his eyes to make sure he isn't seeing things. Yukimura's smile becomes even more amused.

"You're screwing with me!" Niou insists as he strides over quickly to Yukimura. "What is the meaning of this?" He doesn't know whether to laugh, or shake Yukimura until his teeth rattle, except that if he did that Sanada would knock him unconscious faster than he could say "only kidding". Yukimura would be quite capable of doing it himself, mind you, it's just that Sanada would get there first.

"I am." Yukimura admits, laughing. "But I'm deadly serious, also."

Niou glances over at Yagyuu out of the corner of his eye again. He is now pretending to watch the matches, but Niou knows he isn't really.

"You're _screwing with me_!" Niou insists again, louder, as though that is going to make it more true. All he does is succeed in putting off a lot of people from their matches.

"Continue!" Yukimura says, not too loudly, but sharply. Everyone's eyes flicker away from Niou as quickly as they settled on him. "Sit down, Masaharu."

Niou sits, but not because he has been _told to_, he informs himself sharply. Just because he wants an explanation. He can't stop peering at Yagyuu out of the corner of his eye, though he should be paying attention to Yukimura.

"So if this is serious, then explain it to me." Niou says. "Because I don't understand one bit!"

"I would have thought it was obvious to anyone who had eyes," Yukimura muses, almost to himself. "There is Yagyuu Hiroshi, the newest team member. You can tell by his clothing, you see."

Niou wants to snap, but he holds it back. He wants to laugh still, to cry.

"Are you replacing me?" He asks in a whisper. Yukimura frowns; that was not what he was expecting.

"Of course not." He says, looking at daggers at Niou for even thinking it could be so. "We had an opening in the team, did we not?"

"So why him?"

"Because he asked." Yukimura shrugs. And that is not _it_. No-one gets to become a Regular just by _asking_, especially not someone with only two weeks tennis experience. That is so the opposite of Rikkai that it hurts. Before Niou can express an opinion on the matter, Yukimura shushes him with a hand gesture, and continues.

"When you first met, there was a spark." He says, speaking more quietly than before. The way Yagyuu twitches makes Niou wonder if he can hear their conversation, low as it is. No-one else is nearby; those who aren't playing matches are being ordered around by Sanada. It is just the three of them alone on this side of the courts. "You can't deny it; I only happened to run into you by accident and even from a distance _I_ felt it." Yukimura sighs. "I hope you understand why I did what I did. I have to uphold the rules. It is my first job as a captain."

Niou nods, not wanting to interrupt Yukimura's explanation.

"I know you, Masaharu," Yukimura says, "better than you think I do. I knew you would be punished, and continue to rebel anyway. Because that spark was more important to you than the rules this time." He smiles and touches Niou's cheek lightly. "Don't lose that part of yourself. In the time when I'm not your captain, I would tell you that rules are not everything." He coughs. "But now is not that time."

Niou fidgets, glancing over at Yagyuu once again. For some reason Yukimura's touch has made him nervous, but it is as though Yagyuu is determined not to make eye contact again until Niou knows the entire story.

"Hiroshi has come far in an exceedingly short amount of time." Yukimura says. Niou frowns, and Yukimura smiles. "No, I haven't been watching. We played a match."

Niou raises an eyebrow, but knows better than to speak.

"I won, of course," Yukimura assures him, "but he played with a passion I could respect. Someone like that will only ever improve. But, I believe he will improve with you alone. With others, he will play to the best of his abilities, such as they are at the time. With you, he will exceed his current expectations at the time. That is your spark."

Niou has no idea what to say. Luckily for him, Yukimura is not finished.

"We played a match a short while after Hiroshi requested that he be allowed to join the club." Yukimura says. "I believe that would have been the second day after you met; after your first match against one another?"

Niou neither confirms or denies. Yukimura doesn't seem to miss the information.

"I didn't say yes right away, I watched, and waited. I wanted to make sure I was right. I don't have as much complete faith in my instincts as you do. But they generally tend to pay off, don't they?"

"Mmm," Niou replies.

"But I believe he will be an asset to our team." Yukimura says finally. "With your help. And you knew that from the start, which is why you broke the rule. But I believe you have been fairly disciplined." Yukimura looks over at Yagyuu. "And our newest member has been very slightly prepared for what Rikkai has to show him. It's not going to be easy for Yagyuu Hiroshi, Niou."

"I'll be there." Niou says boldly. Yukimura nods; that is something he already knows.

-

**Author's Note:**

> This work is followed by [Play and Be Played](http://archiveofourown.org/works/38082).


End file.
